Market Information Friday 13 August 2021

In the United States, the number of initial jobless claims fell for the third week in a row. Last week, 375,000 applications were filed, down 12,000 from the week before. At the end of last month a record number of new jobs were filed in July, so a further decline in unemployment applications was predicted by analysts.

Calls for scaling back the U.S. bond-buying program are increasing. Presidents of the regional Fed branches, Esther George (Kansas City Fed), Robert Kaplan (Dallas Fed) and James Bullard (St. Louis Fed) have publicly stated that they are in favor of tapering. Supporters of tapering see the recovery of the labor market, the current spike in inflation, and the rebuilding of financial reserves as reasons to slow down with the policy.

Research by ABN Amro shows that Dutch companies are finding it more difficult to find suitable personnel. The bank has developed a measure that identifies the percentage of vacancies. At the latest reading point of the indicator, July 27, 2021, 16.5% vacancies exist. Before the corona crisis, this percentage was around 13.0%. As a result, wages are surging, but the bank also warns that the shortages could lead to a decline in economic recovery.

The 6M Euribor is unchanged at -0.53% compared to previous business day. The 10Y Swap increased with 1 basis point to -0.09% compared to previous business day.

In the attachment, today’s market data on money and capital market rates as well as other rates are presented.